Bay's Choice
by marci.jo27
Summary: Bay gets a phone call that sends her rushing home from China. Now she's part of a love triangle that she was hoping would have faded by now.
1. Chapter 1

_**A/N: I don't know about you guys but that finale hit me like a ton of bricks! I never saw Travis and Bay as anything other than friends until he kissed her. But wow, their chemistry shot through the roof! So since we have a few months wait for the show to come back, I decided to write this story. I don't own any characters from Switched at Birth, this is just for fun!**_

Bay answers her phone after finishing her latest tattoo. It's her brother, Toby. Bay assumed he was calling to tell her Carlton's latest trick. "Hey, can we talk later, I'm permanently alterring someone's flesh here."

Toby knows that Bay has been tattooing in China but John and Katherine don't know. Bay didn't think they would approve of Bay's latest career choice.

"Bay, something has happened. I didn't want you to hear about it from someone else, so I had to call. Travis and Emmett have been in a car accident. I don't know all the details but it's pretty serious."

Bay's heart drops. Suddenly two of the most important people in her life are holding onto theirs. Bay knew she needed to get home right away. She ran to the naturopathic clinic that Daphne has been working in. Daphne had discovered it a few months after they had arrived in China. The herbs and oils they used were fascinating to her. After visiting the clinic so many times, the owner had asked if she needed a part time job. It had since become Daphne's favorite part of the week.

Bay spotted Daphne just outside the clinic. "We need to go home right now."

Daphne hadn't seen Bay in this much of a panic in a long time. "Why? What happened?"

"Emmett and Travis were in a car accident. I don't know what's going on, just that it is bad."

Bay didn't have to ask Daphne twice. Daphne ran inside, apologized to the shop owner, grabbed her things and they headed for their hotel. They hadn't brought much with them to China as they didn't know how long they would be staying. The hotel was for extended stay and it was fully furnished. It took them about an hour to pack up all their clothes and treasures they had found while in China. They both knew that China was a temporary adventure but neither of them had thought it would end this quickly. They thanked the staff, checked out, and headed to the airport.

It was going to take 15 hours to get home but Bay knew they had to get there to be with their friends. As they boarded the first flight which would take them all the way to San Francisco, Bay was looking through pictures on her phone. It had been such a crazy year. She had gotten through the miserable experience with Tank, Emmett had broken up with her and started dating another girl, and Travis had kissed her out of seemingly nowhere.

Bay thought back to that night. She had been on such a high knowing that this was her first show. And then she discovered that it had been a set-up by Travis. She had been so angry at him for taking away what she thought was her first real experience. She couldn't understand why he had kept interfering. The truth finally came out. He had fallen in love with her. Bay remembered that feeling like it was yesterday. She had been blown away by his revelation. He was one of her best friends, and she hadn't even considered having a relationship with him. Then he had kissed her. Bay had been kissed a few times but she was blindsided by the passion behind that kiss. 'Don't tell me that's not real.' And then he walked away.

There were too many feeling to process all at once. And just when Bay had decided to call it a night, they received word that Toby's baby was on his way! Bay had never thought too much about being an aunt but when she saw Carlton's little face for the first time, she knew that that was about as close to heaven as you can get. He was perfect in every single way.

Bay and Daphne had made the decision to go to China that night. Daphne was finished with school for the semester and Bay didn't have anything holding her in Kansas City. She was still confused about her feelings for Travis and Emmett. She knew that a summer away would give her the distance she needed. She found out that Emmett had known about Travis' feelings for Bay and that it had caused a riff between them. They had been like brothers. She wanted them to have the summer to repair their relationship and the time for all of them to figure out how they felt.

Before Bay left for China she had written a letter to both Travis and Emmett. In Emmett's she talked about how hurt she had been but that she had forgiven him. The thing she missed most about Emmett was his friendship and she wanted that back. In her letter to Travis, she told him how much he meant to her as a friend and that his feelings had come as a surprise to her. She told him that she did feel something real in their kiss but that they needed time before they could do anything about it. She expressed in both letters how much she wanted for them to repair their relationship before anything else could happen.

The plan was to come home after the summer but Bay and Daphne had both been enjoying their time in China and neither had wanted to come home yet. Daphne was still trying to figure out what she was going to do for the rest of her life. She knew she wanted to help people but after her struggles with her medical classes, her confidence was wavering. Bay had found solace in tattooing. She found it to be similar to her old tagging ways. She was finding ways to leave her artwork around the world. Plus the pay was enough to sustain them while they were in China. They had come home for Christmas but Emmett and Travis had gone to Mexico with Melody and Gabe.

From the updates Bay had received, Emmett had gone back to L.A. for the fall semester and then came home to Kansas City after the semester had ended. Bay didn't know why he had decided to leave L.A. In all honesty, she was afraid to ask. She knew it was better for them to just catch up in person the next time they saw each other.

When they reached San Francisco, Bay and Daphne were both making phone calls to get updates on Travis and Emmett's conditions. They were both in surgery when they called. They had another layover in Denver but it wasn't long enough to get another update on the boys' conditions.

After what felt like a lifetime, the girls finally landing at Kansas City International. Regina had volunteered to pick up the girls and bring them to the hospital. They ran to Regina as soon as they saw her.

"I assume you girls want to go to the hospital first thing?"

"Yes."

They walk into the lobby where John, Katherine, Toby, and Melody all sit. After the cheerful reunion, Bay asks them to tell her everything that happened.

Melody signs that Travis was driving to the movies with Emmett in the passenger side and someone had run a red light. The car had T-boned Emmett's side of the car and the impact had pushed them into another car that was at the intersection. Both boys had been hit pretty hard. Travis was in surgery because he had had some broken ribs and a broken leg that all had to be set. Emmett was in surgery because after being looked after for awhile, he had some internal bleeding and they weren't sure where it was coming from.

Bay didn't know how to feel. She was relieved that Travis' injuries were relatively mild and non life-threatening. But the uncertainty of Emmett's condition was making her extremely nervous. They waited, and waited, and waited.

Finally a doctor came out and said that Travis was in recovery. He was still groggy but he was coming out of the doctor only wanted one to come in at a time. Travis' parents had apparently come to the hospital earlier but they had needed to leave. Katherine was going to call Travis' mom to let her know he was out of surgery. Melody signed to Bay, 'Why don't you go in. We all saw him before surgery. I think you need to see him with your own eyes.'

Bay looked at Daphne who was ushering her to go in as well. Daphne had known how confused Bay was about her feelings for Travis. She knew that even though Bay had never saw him as anything more than a friend before the kiss, her feelings had shifted after he had kissed her. Not only did she realize it was a possibility, she realized she may even feel the same way. She had known Travis for a long time and knew how good of a guy he was. He deserved a real love. He deserved someone that would treat him right.

The doctor led her into the recovery room and when she first saw him, it took her breath away. His leg was in a cast and propped up, he was hooked to a couple of machines but worst of all his face was bruised and had a few cuts. His eyes were closed but he opened them when he heard her gasp.

He smiled and lifted his finger as to wave to her. "Hey. Don't try to sign, you shouldn't move. I just had to come in here and make sure you were okay. Daphne and I rushed home as soon as we heard."

Even though Travis didn't speak the same way most people do, Bay could read what he was thinking through his eyes. She could tell that Travis still felt the same way about her as he did before. She could also tell that he was surprised to see her. Bay had been in China so long but yet sitting there next to him, it was like she had never left. She felt at home just being next to him.


	2. Chapter 2

_**A/N: Hey guys, thank you for the follows and reviews. I love Switched At Birth and I couldn't even come close to writing a story that will be as good as theirs, but it's still fun to let my imagination wander until the show comes back. I'm sorry I've been neglecting this story, life is crazy. I'm putting some exposition into this chapter just to place where the other characters are in their lives (in my story.) Kind of a necessary evil, and then I can get more into the triangle.**_

Bay sat in the chair next to Travis' bed. She didn't want him to hurt himself trying to sign so she asked if he wanted to hear about what she had been doing in China. He smiled and nodded his head yes.

She told him about where they had been staying, how she had started tattooing. Travis laughed when he heard about the tattooing. He though it was a good fit for her. She told him about Daphne's new job and how great she was at it. She looked at her hands.

"Travis, I'm really sorry about how I left things with you. You deserved more than just a 'Goodbye, see ya when I see ya.'"

Travis reached down and grabbed Bay's hand. They had so much to talk about.

The nurse knocked on the door and Travis' mom walked in.

"I'm going to go see if there's an update on Emmett. I'll come see you later, I promise."

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Bay went out to the lobby to wait with the others. She asked Melody if they had heard anything yet and she shook her head no. Katherine walked over to Bay and gave her a hug. "I have missed you both so much. Tell me about China, I want to know what you've been doing."

Bay laughed nervously. "Okay, Mom... Don't freak out. I got a job as a tattoo artist."

John came right out of his seat. "You've been doing what?"

"Dad, please calm down. It's a totally clean shop, and I learned everything about how to keep myself and my clients safe."

Katherine didn't seem as upset as her husband. She whispered to Bay, "You know, I may enlist you to give me some ink."

Bay started laughing. "Oh Mom, you never cease to surprise me."

A nurse and a doctor walked into the lobby. Daphne translated what they were saying to Melody.

"As we knew, he had some internal bleeding. After giving him a CT scan, we saw that his spleen had been ruptured. We rushed him into surgery and we were able to save the spleen. It's going to take some time for him to recover, but he should be just fine. He's in recovery now, and will likely wake up soon. One visitor at a time for right now, he's just been through a lot."

Melody signs to Daphne who thanks the doctors for everything they did to help him. The nurse leads Melody to his recovery room.

Katherine points out the late hour and suggests they go home for the night. Both boys have been through a lot with the accident and surgery and since both their mothers are here, they should leave and let them get some rest. The girls didn't want to leave but they knew Katherine had a point.

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The girls weren't the only ones who had changed in 10 months. After Carlton was born, Toby and Lily had gone to London. While she was pregnant, Lily was convinced that it would be the best thing for them. After all, her mother had already been through it. But Toby and the Kennish's had been more supportive than Lily could have ever imagined. After a few months in London, Lily's mother had been driving her crazy. She hovered over everything Lily and Toby did with Carlton. Lily felt like her mother was trying to raise Carlton for them. Toby and Lily had made the decision to come back to Kansas City. They had found an apartment in the same building that they previously lived in.

After Eric took off with Will, Regina was really hurt. She really thought Eric had changed and would go back to Atlanta to work things out. Regina hasn't heard from Eric since he skipped town. She put all her energy and focus into the Cracked Mug. She kept doing art shows and she had started having open mic nights and live performances from bands around town. The place was actually pulling a profit.

John and Katherine sold the car wash and liquidated a few other assets. They were able to catch up on their back taxes and even though Katherine had been very disappointed in John for the way he had handled their money in the past, she was proud of the way he owned up to his mistakes and come out of the ashes. They weren't in the top 1% of the city anymore but they weren't living in poverty either. Katherine had actually enjoyed cutting back. She had found comfort in becoming a minimalist in some aspects of her life. John wasn't handling it quite as well.

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The next day, Bay returned to the hospital. When she got there, Melody told her that Travis' mom was in the room with him. But Emmett was awake and was probably almost done with his breakfast. Bay opened the door to Emmett's room and she was surprised to see him smiling at something on his phone. Immediately Bay assumed that he was talking to Skye. Emmett looked up and waved Bay into the room.

"You look a lot better than I would have thought you would."

Emmett signed that he didn't know whether to be flattered or offended.

"I meant it as a compliment! Usually when people have surgery, it takes them a little bit to be back to their old self, but when I walked in here, it looked like you were already laughing at something Skye said."

Emmett looked confused. He signed "Bay, I'm not with Skye anymore. I was watching a cat video on YouTube. My aunt sent it to me hoping it would cheer me up."

"You're not with Skye anymore?"

(signing) "No. That's part of the reason I came home. Turns out L.A. isn't big enough for the both of us. I hurt her pretty bad and she let me know it every time I saw her."

"Wow. I had no idea. What made you break up?"

(signing) "I couldn't stop thinking about somebody else. I was honest with Skye and she didn't take it very well."

Just then a nurse walked in and let them know she needed to take Emmett's vitals and check his incisions. Bay told Emmett that she would see him later.

After leaving Emmett's room, Bay was feeling kind of hurt. Her heart rate had sped up when Emmett told her that he and Skye were no longer together but then in the same breath she found out that there was yet another girl in his life. Bay wasn't sure why she kept expecting for the two of them to end up back together. Emmett had clearly moved on.

In the days that followed, Emmett was allowed to have more than one visitor at a time so Bay never went in by herself. She was afraid that he would start talking about this new girl and she wouldn't have an excuse to leave.

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After a few days of recovery, Travis was finally released from the hospital. He was currently living in the dorms at the University but with the broken leg and broken ribs, it was going to be impossible to stay there alone. Travis' mom's house was not big enough and not equipped for Travis to recover comfortably. John and Katherine insisted he stay with them until he was able to get around easier. Melody had informed all of Travis' teachers what was going on with him and she was gathering all his homework from each class. There was about 2 months left in the semester. They knew it would be a lot of work, but they were hoping to help him through the rest of the year so he could have the summer off to recover.

Bay wasn't sure how to feel about Travis living under the same roof as her. She would have thought that 10 months away would have been plenty of time for her to decide how she felt but the moment she saw him again, the memory of their kiss came flooding back to her. It was such a shock that he was even kissing her and then on top of that, she had found herself really enjoying it.

Travis would be staying in the room next to Bay's in her parents house, and that made it extremely difficult for her to sleep that first night. Meanwhile, Travis was having an equally hard time falling asleep knowing that Bay, for the first time in 10 months, was just a wall away. He picked up his phone.

(Texting)

Travis: Wanna talk?

Bay: Be there in 5.


End file.
